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Post by Timberwere on Dec 27, 2017 8:09:11 GMT
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Post by gpvos on Dec 27, 2017 8:10:15 GMT
One day soon, Kat is going to discover that everything in this universe is controlled by an omnipotent entity named Tom Siddell. Breaking the fourth wall with SCIENCE!
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Post by madjack on Dec 27, 2017 8:21:32 GMT
Y'r a teeny tiny little too defensive, my dear. She's got reason to be. If the arrow shares underlying similarities with rey's etheric restraints that Anya and Donald created, Kat has grounds to be worried that her parents may have made something genuinely horrible. |
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Post by imaginaryfriend on Dec 27, 2017 8:39:59 GMT
This comic reminds me of two things, one of which is a retread of something I previously posted:
The arrow is a live munition. It has to have at least one "fuse" of some sort (to activate the device when it hits the target) and fuses are sometimes hard to see even if you know what you're looking for. If it has a backup fuse there may be trouble.
The loose restrictions on research here in the Court really do make a difference. As an undergrad I almost got in trouble for "unauthorized human experimentation" (which is a career-ending rap) by writing a brief paper on a proposed change in a study method and circulating the revised protocol for feedback, thus subjecting some sample post-study interview questions to being READ by people, and was told that I should have submitted the idea in brief to the proper department committee months in advance. Sure, part of that is bureaucracy run amok but they really do try to instill the fear of gawd in people regarding anything even close to human experimentation. That Kat is able to suggest this experiment speaks of an attitude that is worlds apart from conventional institutions.
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Post by arf on Dec 27, 2017 9:28:58 GMT
I am fairly sure the arrow still contains a couple of surprises.
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Post by hnau on Dec 27, 2017 10:33:12 GMT
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Post by zbeeblebrox on Dec 27, 2017 10:54:34 GMT
It's Kat Caveats week! Next she'll pull out Coyote's blade, but don't worry! It won't be used to cut anything! It just needs to be unsheathed and pointing directly at you. Also, there's this loaded, high caliber rifle...
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Post by Jelly Jellybean on Dec 27, 2017 11:19:21 GMT
I wonder what other shocking ideas Tom considered Kat having before going with these two.
Kat: "In the last experiment I will test the strength of Renard's self control by ordering him to kill you. After we're done we will transfer ownership. Wut? Don't worry, it will be fine! Have a little faith."
Bots: *observe in attentive silence*
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Post by todd on Dec 27, 2017 12:38:39 GMT
The loose restrictions on research here in the Court really do make a difference. As an undergrad I almost got in trouble for "unauthorized human experimentation" (which is a career-ending rap) by writing a brief paper on a proposed change in a study method and circulating the revised protocol for feedback, thus subjecting some sample post-study interview questions to being READ by people, and was told that I should have submitted the idea in brief to the proper department committee months in advance. Sure, part of that is bureaucracy run amok but they really do try to instill the fear of gawd in people regarding anything even close to human experimentation. That Kat is able to suggest this experiment speaks of an attitude that is worlds apart from conventional institutions. As I've mentioned, I suspect that this kind of thing may stem from the Court needing to take care not to squelch the "correct mind-set" in the next generation of scientists working there. If it trains them to think "Experimenting with this arrow isn't a good idea", they might end up thinking when they grow up "This power plant extracting ether from the water isn't a good idea". |
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Post by wynne on Dec 27, 2017 13:42:09 GMT
Kat, my main babe, maybe this isn't the kind of thing you just spring on someone.
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Post by ctso74 on Dec 27, 2017 14:34:24 GMT
If Rey proceeds, he has immense faith in Kat. Of all the best friends I've had, I'd never go ahead with something this dangerous and careless. Girlfriends, sure, but I don't think Rey likes her like that.
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Post by maxptc on Dec 27, 2017 14:57:50 GMT
"Don't worry, I only plan on using the magic arrow improved restraint program on my enemies and Paz" Haha, but seriously this is how villains are born. It's Kat Caveats week! Next she'll pull out Coyote's blade, but don't worry! It won't be used to cut anything! It just needs to be unsheathed and pointing directly at you. Also, there's this loaded, high caliber rifle... "Well I won't be doing that! Geez! But I wanted to have a relationship similar to what my parents made, so I did get engaged to Paz and we are gonna be married soon, and we do call ourselves swingers, but we aren't going to do anything like that to you specifically. No no! In fact, I know you're straight, and you're a fox traped in a plush, so that would be a painful for you. But this could help figure out why." |
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Post by jda on Dec 27, 2017 15:24:11 GMT
Famous last words
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Post by TBeholder on Dec 27, 2017 15:34:52 GMT
Aww, Kat grows into a proper mad scientist! 😹 She could present it better. But then, this could be worse, too. As an undergrad I almost got in trouble for "unauthorized human experimentation" (which is a career-ending rap) by writing a brief paper on a proposed change in a study method and circulating the revised protocol for feedback, thus subjecting some sample post-study interview questions to being READ by people, and was told that I should have submitted the idea in brief to the proper department committee months in advance. Sure, part of that is bureaucracy run amok but they really do try to instill the fear of gawd in people regarding anything even close to human experimentation. I suspect your interpretation is too optimistic. |
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Post by imaginaryfriend on Dec 27, 2017 17:17:49 GMT
As an undergrad I almost got in trouble for "unauthorized human experimentation" (which is a career-ending rap) by writing a brief paper on a proposed change in a study method and circulating the revised protocol for feedback, thus subjecting some sample post-study interview questions to being READ by people, and was told that I should have submitted the idea in brief to the proper department committee months in advance. Sure, part of that is bureaucracy run amok but they really do try to instill the fear of gawd in people regarding anything even close to human experimentation. I suspect your interpretation is too optimistic. Nah it really was about bureaucracy. Their pinheaded reasoning was as follows... Policy: The same oversight guidelines and discipline procedures must apply to all departments (even the head-pshrinkers whose studies may consist entirely of questions). Definition: Post-experiment interview is part of a study. Point of fact 1: The sample questions were in the post-interview of a proposed study. Point of fact 2: At my unofficial tribunal I admitted that I showed the post-study interview sample questions to people in my department and asked for a response. Definition: Questions can be all or part of an experimental study. Therefore in .2 I admitted to running a psychological study. Point of fact 3: I did not follow procedure for getting permission to run a study. Therefore I ran a study outside of department oversight. The proposed study was on humans and I asked humans questions. Definition: study = experimentation. Conclusion: OMFG Unauthorized human experimentation! Luckily I got an unofficial warning. I'm pretty sure I could have beaten that if it went into official discipline channels but even if I did it would have been a black mark by my name for life. |
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Post by bedinsis on Dec 27, 2017 19:08:12 GMT
For some reason I get Rey-accidentally-possesses-Kat's-body-vibes.
That or a feeling of dread that something is about to go horribly wrong.
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Post by Runningflame on Dec 27, 2017 19:31:58 GMT
Prediction: stuff goes horribly wrong, Rey gets trapped in the arrow, Kat busts out her Scepter of Etheric Hacking to free him, and Rey sees Kat's angel form. Revelations and plot development ensue.
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Post by vankersabra17 on Dec 27, 2017 21:26:40 GMT
One day, Kat is going to build an Armageddon button. I know she will. The only question is:
Who is going to press It?
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Post by blazingstar on Dec 27, 2017 22:54:20 GMT
Not whom, but WHAT. She's going to use it on Reynardine and Annie, but just to study their transfer, not to trap them against their will in eternal agony. In a way, what the arrow does is similar to Rey and Annie's contract - it bonds entities together permanently. Kat just wants to do it in a way she can control / study / see. |
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Post by todd on Dec 28, 2017 0:11:15 GMT
What's additionally unsettling about this scene is that Kat had been revolted by Diego and the other Founders' use of the arrow, their treatment of Jeanne and her lover that the arrow was part of, etc. - to the point of thoroughly disliking Diego (and even feeling less than happy about the Court now that she knew the dark secret of its founders). She'd even been reluctant for a time to work on the robot project because of Diego's own role in creating the Court robots. And now, she's ready to casually use that instrument, as if so excited about the scientific potential that she's forgotten her initial opposition to everything the arrow was part of.
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Post by mturtle7 on Dec 28, 2017 0:25:57 GMT
What's additionally unsettling about this scene is that Kat had been revolted by Diego and the other Founders' use of the arrow, their treatment of Jeanne and her lover that the arrow was part of, etc. - to the point of thoroughly disliking Diego (and even feeling less than happy about the Court now that she knew the dark secret of its founders). She'd even been reluctant for a time to work on the robot project because of Diego's own role in creating the Court robots. And now, she's ready to casually use that instrument, as if so excited about the scientific potential that she's forgotten her initial opposition to everything the arrow was part of. Ah, but the Founders were sacrificing others to protect themselves, while Kat is merely putting others at very slight risks to further the cause of science. Obviously, these are two totally different things with a completely unbreakable distinguishing line between them. |
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Post by Zox Tomana on Dec 28, 2017 5:33:51 GMT
What's additionally unsettling about this scene is that Kat had been revolted by Diego and the other Founders' use of the arrow, their treatment of Jeanne and her lover that the arrow was part of, etc. - to the point of thoroughly disliking Diego (and even feeling less than happy about the Court now that she knew the dark secret of its founders). She'd even been reluctant for a time to work on the robot project because of Diego's own role in creating the Court robots. And now, she's ready to casually use that instrument, as if so excited about the scientific potential that she's forgotten her initial opposition to everything the arrow was part of. Ah, but the Founders were sacrificing others to protect themselves, while Kat is merely putting others at very slight risks to further the cause of science. Obviously, these are two totally different things with a completely unbreakable distinguishing line between them. One might also note that the Founders sacrificed others with full knowledge of the ethics and morals behind their actions. And Kat's risk of Annie and Renard is a calculated and reasoned risk which will both further the cause of SCIENCE! and also help her develop a containment spell that won't cause the detainee a boatload of pain, and is being done with confidence that no harm will come about to the subjects. Kat is also not doing this against the will of Annie or Rey, and is laying out what she wants to do and what she hopes to achieve. Compare Jeanne's situation where the true plan was apparently not wholly explained to her (the way I've always read it, I gathered that the Founders told Jeanne that only SHE was the person to be sacrificed and left out the "We're gonna murder your boy, too"), nor was she likely given much of a choice. There is a world of difference in Kat's approach. |
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Post by arf on Dec 28, 2017 7:26:09 GMT
Hmm! This sudden interest in mad science reminds me there was that game smack down between Gunnerkrigg Court and Girl Genius. Did Lucretia Mongfish hop over and take control of Kat?
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Post by todd on Dec 28, 2017 12:40:24 GMT
Good points, but in light of how much Kat had loathed everything the arrow had stood for, it still feels ominous that she's now willing to carry out experiments with it (and experiments that are entirely her own idea), without a trace of that old antipathy.
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Post by pyradonis on Dec 28, 2017 18:12:30 GMT
Is Annie already regretting when she left the arrow for Kat to study instead of insisting on its destruction? Hmm...
Different thought: Rey does know the arrow and does seem to know how it got there. So he knows about the adventure at the river. So what does he think about that? Why was he not present to help?
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Post by Trillium on Dec 29, 2017 0:08:52 GMT
From what we've seen no one know exactly what the arrow does.
Come on, Kat don't do this. It's a bad idea.
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Post by todd on Dec 29, 2017 0:20:39 GMT
Is Annie already regretting when she left the arrow for Kat to study instead of insisting on its destruction? Hmm... Different thought: Rey does know the arrow and does seem to know how it got there. So he knows about the adventure at the river. So what does he think about that? Why was he not present to help? Maybe Tom decided that it would mean one more character having to maneuver around and keep track of, when he already had Annie, Kat, Jeanne, Parley, Andrew, Red, Ayilu, and Robot, and that it was best to leave Reynardine out of the adventure as a result (though without even providing an in-story explanation for his absence). |
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Post by todd on Dec 29, 2017 0:25:03 GMT
From what we've seen no one know exactly what the arrow does. Come on, Kat don't do this. It's a bad idea. It does seem as if curiosity's gotten the better of her (I certainly can't see any practical point in using the arrow). It might parallel the robot project. That started off with a specific and practical purpose: giving Robot a new body after the old one was paper-clipped. But it increasingly became, to Kat, more something to be done for its own sake. (I'll admit that in Kat's place, I'd have stuck with giving Robot the "roto mouse" body we saw in Chapter Eighteen. It could easily be hidden - remember, he's a fugitive from robot justice at this point - and might not arouse the questions that a new humanoid robot might raise.) And of course, we've seen how that's led to an increasingly creepy robot religion. |
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Post by pyradonis on Dec 29, 2017 17:42:55 GMT
Is Annie already regretting when she left the arrow for Kat to study instead of insisting on its destruction? Hmm... Different thought: Rey does know the arrow and does seem to know how it got there. So he knows about the adventure at the river. So what does he think about that? Why was he not present to help? Maybe Tom decided that it would mean one more character having to maneuver around and keep track of, when he already had Annie, Kat, Jeanne, Parley, Andrew, Red, Ayilu, and Robot, and that it was best to leave Reynardine out of the adventure as a result (though without even providing an in-story explanation for his absence). I can't imagine Tom conciously making that decision. |
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Post by todd on Dec 29, 2017 17:54:15 GMT
I can't imagine Tom conciously making that decision. Maybe not, but he's certainly wound up with a lot of his readers asking why Reynardine wasn't in the chapter, why his absence wasn't even given an in-story explanation, and hasn't answered their question yet. |
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